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It is also a great opportunity for us foreign volunteers to interact and work with these families. In my experience, the future homeowners are perplexed and moved that anyone would travel from so far away to help them. They are particularly moved when they are told that each one of us volunteers receives support from family and friends meaning that there are in effect many communities of people thousands of kilometres away who are interested in their fate. At the same time, the volunteers come away with life changing experiences and an understanding of a culture they would never have had if they had just passed through the country in question on some holiday tour.

It is probably unusual however for volunteers to get to see the current living conditions of those families. One day after our work was complete, we were invited to visit the current housing of two of the families. The tour we were given was a poignant reminder for me why I believe in the work that Habitat does.

First, it’s important to note that in most places in the world, competition for housing is fierce as people are flocking in large numbers from rural areas to cities or towns where job opportunities are perceived to be better. While Humjibre is a very small and isolated town, its proximity to Ghana’s cocoa plantations make it a sought after location to live. Living in this community allows one to pursue the seasonal employment of the cocoa industry while also pursuing other work in the off season to supplement a very unsteady income. To make a long story short, people are making economic decisions and choosing to live where they believe they can provide best for their families. The negative side effect is a lot of substandard housing and overcrowding.

The first house we visited was a row house of 4 one-room units. In other words, four families living in four rooms. The future Habitat family of four people lived in one of these rooms measuring not more than 12′ x 12′. On entering the room ones eyes had to adjust to the near complete darkness. There was one bed, a small cupboard and a few boxes for personal belongings. The tenant’s wife sat on the bed – the only thing to sit on in the room – with their newborn child on her lap. No kitchen. All the cooking has to be prepared outside on an open fire. I wondered to myself how one prepares a meal in the rainy season when torrential downpours can last several hours or even all day. When we were asked about rent, we were told that landlords in Ghana charge an entire year’s rent up front as a deposit. At 14 cedis a month (or about 10 dollars), rent may not seem high to our standards. But considering that this tenant’s mortgage for his 3-room Habitat house will be 17 cedis a month you realize that the landlord is perpetrating nothing less than highway robbery.

After feeling a little like we have intruded into this family’s personal space a bit too much we headed off to see the second family’s current living situation. The tight quarters and near darkness was just as bad as the first place – one dark room. But what made the situation worse was that across the 30′ courtyard of the 4-family house stood a makeshift bar with line of chairs outside supporting the carcasses of the clan of local piss-tanks hopped up on local hooch. This rowdy crowd carroused within earshot of the women working and kids playing in the courtyard and, I dare say, intensified the level of misery these families lived in. Want to complain to the bar or its patrons about the noise and unsociable behaviour? Don’t bother, ’cause your landlord is one of the souses wallowing in his own idleness.

The good news is that the community that Habitat is building in Humjibre is up the hill and out of crowdedness of this part of town. The homes are simple and small but have the basic necessities under one roof and give the families a bit of room and peace.